


Tolerance

by Rogercat



Category: TOLKIEN J. R. R. - Works & Related Fandoms, The Silmarillion and other histories of Middle-Earth - J. R. R. Tolkien
Genre: Anti-Racism, Bearded Dwarf Women, Culture Shock, DVTW21, DiverseTolkienWeek, Dwarf Culture & Customs, Dwarf/Elf Relationship(s), Established Relationship, F/M, Female Narvi, Married Couple, Religion, Second Age, eastern Narvi, human cultures
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-27
Updated: 2021-02-27
Packaged: 2021-03-18 22:49:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,109
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29741076
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rogercat/pseuds/Rogercat
Summary: Celebrimbor and Narvi have a talk about religions and cultures
Relationships: Celebrimbor | Telperinquar/Narvi
Kudos: 4





	Tolerance

One of the strongest sides of their relationship was that they could learn about each other's birth culture and religion. 

“You do not pray to the Valar in this manner anymore?” Narvi asked, as Celebrimbor finally had managed to piece together what little he remembered from the faith directed to the Valar as a very young child in Valinor. In front of them, stood a small altar with fourteen names engraved on a flat stone, a candle lightened as a sign of a prayer. 

“No, my grandfather did not pray much to the Valar anymore after that his father married his second wife, Lady Indis of the Vanyar, as he saw the wedding as a betrayal of the faint hope that his birth mother Miriel would eventually return.” 

Aulë had been the Vala most likely to be given prayers by Fëanor in his youth, but as Morgoth had soured things, even the Smith among the Valar no longer was trusted by the Noldorin Crown Prince. 

“Tell me more of how your paternal family showed tolerance against the Elves outside Doriath. And the Men and Dwarves from that period as well.” 

Rolling up her sleeves and letting her start setting up an altar to show him how the Dwarves of the East would pray to their Maker, Celebrimbor talked so Narvi could listen. His memories of the First Age, and how relationships had been between the different races at that time. 

“ I think that they were very fascinated by how different the cultures of Men already were back then. Bór the Faithful and his tribe of Easterlings, for example, had left their homelands somewhere in the East because the tribes had a...not so pleasant habit of kidnapping girls and women from enemies tribes to become wifes in forced marriages, and he wanted to avoid that to happen to his own daughters and granddaughters that his own wife nearly became a victim of that not long after their wedding.” 

Celebrimbor could still remember his own shock at learning how the race of Men could have such a revolting custom related to marriage, even if Bór and his Easterling tribe did not do it anymore themselves. 

“Oh, that barbaric custom of  _ bride-kidnapping!  _ It is thankfully not as common anymore in the East, from what I know, thanks to the rise of Mannish kingdoms and empires that have strong laws to ensure that the ruler will be a powerful man,” Narvi said when she realized what sort of custom he mentioned indirectly. Muttering under her breath over that her long hair braid was starting to become loose and the risk of the whole braid becoming undone, she began to braid it tighter again. 

“Your home Clan, the Blacklocks, are near Rhûn, right?” 

Of course this talk would lead to such questions from the Elven husband, it was not like he might not always pay attention to minor details in the middle of being focused on some work of his again. 

“The very deep south of the Orocarni, yes, it is why my amad Ala had such dark skin. I am only slightly lighter in skin colour thanks to adad Balder and Ugmil ’amad Frigga coming from one of the “northern” clans as they are called among the Blacklocks.” 

Yes, Celebrimbor recalled how the various family members of hers had been looking when still alive. Narvi had inherited the white-blonde hair, beard and green eyes of her paternal grandmother Frigga and the very tanned skin from Balder made a sharp contrast to his wife Ala, who had been hard to not notice in a crowd with her dark brown skin colour, the coal black hair and beard which showed her origins in the distant south. Out of her two siblings, Narvi and her younger sister Loki had been very similar outside that Loki had the same black eyes as their mother, while their older brother Odin had taken after his parents in a more blended way that was less dramatic than his sisters. 

“I remember that Bór and his tribe followed an animalistic and shamanic religion, is that still done in the East?” 

Now she had to think back to her childhood a little, those basic education and lessons about the Mannish cultures and customs was well over a hundred years old after all. 

“Out in the steppes of Khand, I am sure, at last. If Bór was a Khan, as it is a title often referring to a ruler or military leader, then he did really lead his tribe a long way north. Unless it was started earlier, before his time, and they kept their traditional titles as an attempt to keep true to their origins.” 

She could see from the movements of his fingers that Celebrimbor had to start feeling some dawning desire to learn more of those cultures she knew about yet he himself had never seen. Well, the Noldor was famous for their love of knowledge, so it was probably that side of him that reacted to all this new information that she gave him now. 

“That's it, I am signing us up to join the escort of Durin's sons and lady Hinata to the part of the Orocarni where her Clan, the Stiffbeards, lives in their mansion since she wished to visit her birth home again,“ she said loudly to get his attention, “it should not be so difficult to find a group of merchants there who will travel further south to the Blacklock mansion where my maternal relatives should still be around. I do have a maternal uncle and cousin who both managed to find a bride after all, so hopefully there are some new relatives for me to meet too.” 

Celebrimbor, who had been almost daydreaming of how stunning Narvi would look whatever she dressed up in the eastern fashions of her childhood, was quickly brought back to reality by her words, only seeing how his Dwarven wife already was on the way out of the work room. 

“Narvi? Narvi, I can not be away from Ost-in-Edhil for so long as a journey to the East and back would take! I am supposed to be helping with expanding the city in the neighborhood intended for long-distance guests who are staying for a longer period!” 

Hurrying out of the work room in a attempt to find his beloved wife and talk this over, before she did something that needed a little more planning than just being something done on a whim, Celebrimbor prayed that Galadriel and Celeborn would not see that sort of journey as a disguised search for the still missing Maglor somewhere in the East. 

**Author's Note:**

> Ugmil ’amad means Grandmother in Khuzdul, the Dwarven language of Middle-earth. 
> 
> Narvi mother Ala is meant to be African-inspired, coming from the Blacklock clan, while Balder and Frigga would be Scandivanians in RL, making Narvi, her brother Odin and sister Loki biracial
> 
> I am imagining Bór the Faithful and his tribe of Easterlings from the First Age to be inspired by the Mongolian culture 
> 
> Khand was the name of a land which lay to the south-east of Mordor and to the east of Near Harad. It seemed suitable to possibly base a Mongolian-inspired Mannish culture there
> 
> Hinata is a Eastern Dwarrowdam who is a close friend and lady-in-waiting to Ragnhild, the wife of Durin II, she is meant to hail from the Stiffbeard Clan, who I headcanon as Japanese


End file.
